Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship
BURLINGTON — In the corner of the downtown Quarterstaff Games store, Ben Drape and Zach Roussel carefully laid out their play mats and shuffled their decks of Pokémon cards. After the final cut of the cards, the so-called Pokémon trainers exchanged a fist bump — a simple ritual signaling the start of their battle.
Around them, the store buzzed with activity and conversations. Fellow trainers — a Pokémon term for players — traded cards, sketched the Japanese characters and tested their skills on the Pokémon Champions video game.
The gathering, a part of Quarterstaff’s new weekly Pokémon Club, brought together fans of all ages to play, trade and build a community within and beyond the game.
“As a kid, I didn’t have a place like this. This is a reason why I am a huge fan of doing these events,” said CJ Burwinkel, a Pokémon “Professor,” or brand ambassador, who helped develop Burlington’s Pokémon scene and attended the event. “Being able to provide not only for like-minded adults, but also kids, is really important.”
For many players, stores like Quarterstaff have become third spaces, welcoming places outside of work or home where friendships form around geek culture. The spaces allow the gamers to be themselves — even as they assume new identities in the games they play.
At their core, tabletop card games like Pokémon are strategy card games where players attempt to defeat their opponents. Role-playing games, or RPGs, such as Dungeons & Dragons, are narrative-driven games where players create characters and collectively shape an unfolding story. A “Dungeon Master,” for instance, acts as a narrator and referee, shaping the world and story surrounding the characters while establishing rules.
For Ross Johnston, who is queer and has epilepsy, playing D&D at their local library as a child provided an outlet where they could express themselves.
As Johnston got older, they sought out game stores as a space to connect with others. Through D&D, Johnston got the chance to role-play gay characters, which helped them find self-acceptance, they said.
Johnston now works at Quarterstaff Games, which they said is a gathering spot for the queer community.
“There’s a Venn diagram there that nearly perfectly overlaps. The gays love D&D,” Johnston said. “You are getting to explore yourself and share these experiences with other people. Tabletop games are such a solid locus for that.”
Quarterstaff, which is also home to Earth Prime Comics, opened on the Church Street Marketplace in 1989 and is one of Vermont’s oldest game stores. It holds weekly events ranging from Pokémon Club Wednesdays to Star Wars Legion Thursdays.
In May, Quarterstaff relocated to the new Burlington Square development on Bank Street. Beyond having additional room, the new location is handicap accessible, eliminating a challenge posed by the stairs at the old location.
“We were turning away whole swaths of the community,” Johnston said. “We were unable to get certain certifications to run certain kinds of events. So that feels so important to us to be able to reach more of our community.”
Old Town Café & Comics in Williston has become another go-to spot for gamers. As customers step through the door, they are greeted by rows of comic books on the right and shelves filled with novels, manga and graphic novels to the left.
Nestled between them is the café’s bakery case, featuring menu items like the “Star Lord” breakfast sandwich and Oreo donuts.
Ben and Kelsey Perry bought the comic book business from its previous owner, Rory Malone, in 2024, operating under the name Champion Comics & Coffee. When the Perrys acquired the café side the following year, they renamed it to its current moniker.
Beyond its daily comic and café offerings, Old Town hosts monthly events such as Free Comic Book Day and release events for new Magic: The Gathering sets.
On Saturday, June 27, Old Town will host its second Free RPG Day, an annual national event where stores offer new and exclusive game content. The event aims to draw new and veteran players into game stores.
“The only goal is to just get people to meet other people and maybe try something that they haven’t,” Ben Perry said. “Even if you’ve never played a game before in your life, there will be something there for you and someone there who can teach you.”
Perry sees the shop as more than just a retail space, believing it serves as a community hub where people can connect through their shared interest in gaming.
“If you’re in this space, you are always going to be welcomed,” he said.